Ex-Missouri governor considers suing prosecutor over dismissed indictment

Former Missouri Gov. Eric Greitens said Thursday he might sue the Democratic prosecutor who filed an unsubstantiated felony charge against him and hopes the FBI launches an investigation into the now-dismissed indictment that ended his reign as the state’s chief executive.

“It was a crime that was committed against me, but most importantly a crime against the people of Missouri. This was their votes that they worked to overturn," Greitens said during a wide-ranging interview on the Just the News podcast John Solomon Reports. "

You can listen to the full podcast here.

Greitens reacted to a lengthy investigative report in Just the News a day earlier that disclosed court transcripts, videotapes and other evidence showing how the case brought against the former GOP rising star and Navy SEAL by St. Louis Circuit Attorney Kimberly Gardner has boomeranged on the prosecution.

Officials in St. Louis have charged Gardner’s chief investigator in the case, ex-FBI agent William Tisaby, with seven felonies in an indictment alleging her office withheld evidence of Greiten’s innocence from defense lawyers and lied under oath.

Gardner, the city’s first African-American prosecutor who was heavily backed by the liberal megadonor George Soros, has denied wrongdoing and has not been charged with any crimes. But she has been ordered to appear before a grand jury and is expected to be called as a witness in Tisaby’s trial later this month. Tisaby has pled innocent.

Gardner was forced to withdraw her indictment of Greitens in summer of 2018 for lack of evidence, but not before it inflicted significant political damage that caused him to resign just two years into his tenure.

The breadth of alleged prosecutorial misconduct in the case has only recently burst into public view, drawing comparisons to the FBI’s handling of a counterintelligence investigation of President Trump’s campaign on unsubstantiated allegations of Russia collusion.

Greitens said the newly emerged court filings show the prosecutor’s office told the court they charged with  “a crime to look for the evidence” they didn’t have, describing it as “rampant misconduct,” "a political hit job" and an example of how the prosecution “weaponized the law."

Asked whether he was considering a federal lawsuit against Gardner, Greitens said it is under serious consideration but he is waiting to see how the criminal trial of Tisaby turns out.

“Yes, it is something we are seriously considering and we are going to let the criminal prosecution continue,” he said.

Greitens said he supports a recent request  by Missouri state lawmakers to get the FBI to investigate the episode. “I believe it is really important that federal law enforcement get involved,” he said.

His first elected tenure cut short, Greitens said he would love to run for office again in the future but right now is focused on just getting the facts out about what happened in his prosecution.